We all know that our current pandemic is affecting the people around us in different ways. My 18 year old sister is a senior at GM High School, and was “livin’ her best life” before the mandates caused her to miss out on the most exciting times of being a senior- prom, senior skip day, graduation, etc. I wanted to get her perspective on how COVID-19 is affecting her, so I asked her the following questions:

 

 What do you feel you’ve lost during covid-19?

Well, I missed 3 months of school my sophomore year due to a back surgery. Long story short my back issues progressively got worse into junior year, so I missed most of junior year of high school. I was looking forward to this year because I was hoping to finally experience a “normal” year of  high school without missing school for long periods of time, which obviously didn’t happen. I’m upset that I no longer will be able to walk during my high school gratuation. I’ve been accepted to James Madison University but my summer orientation has been canceled. In addition to grieving the fact that these events have been canceled, I’m also struggling to find the motivation to show up for my online school. I fear that I won’t have a normal first year of college and this has led me to reevaluate if I should take a gap year. 

 

What do you feel you’ve gained from this?

This experience has helped me to appreciate the little things in life and simplify. I’ve been realizing some things I was making time for weren’t really all that important. Also, I’m grateful that I have gained more time to enjoy the outdoors. 

 

What do you feel you’ve learned?

I’ve learned that human interaction is very important for people’s mental health. I’ve been upset that I am unable to see some of my closest friends and family members. Not being able to see people that you love due to this virus has really put into perspective the importance of connecting with people.

 

Ariana Miley

Yoga and Meditation Instructor

Skip to content